Terminal
by glenCoCo808
Summary: A VR game that's gotten real popular recently becomes a connection for five childhood friends who split apart into two groups of two and a loner.
1. Prologue

**Terminal**

 **Prologue**

 **By: Glen Galiza**

"No way I got chosen to be a beta tester? Talk about awesome!"

In this world we live in, Virtual Reality (VR for short) games have taken us by storm. Games like /Code, Blade Skills Online, and League of Fighters are what brought the VR dream to life. There was an announcement for a new game coming out, one that would bring about a revolution. Me and ninety nine others were chosen as beta testers for the new game.

"It's time to see if this game will actually start a revolution."

Like most VR games, a VR headset was required to play. The company who came up with the device, Hondai Wamco, appeared out of nowhere bringing the first ever successful VR project to life. Their product was given the name Neural Linked System, or N.L.S for short.

I put on my VR headset which covered up my entire head leaving my face exposed. There was an eye shield however, what purpose that served I will never know. The headset was connected to the N.L.S system by several wires and then connected to my desktop computer by another couple of wires.

Just like all VR games, the N.L.S device puts your body in a state of sleep, this makes it easier for the device to pick up your brain's neuron impulses to make it feel like you're in the game.

I could feel my body being induced with sleep. I should've lied down on my bed earlier, I almost missed it because of my drowsiness. As soon as my eyes closed I ended up in a room of white, overhead were the words "WELCOME GUREN" painted in black.

"Access Mail."

A screen popped up in front of me with a log of all my e-mails. The newest one on the top of the list was the beta invitation to the new game.

"Terminal, that sounds too plain of a name. Maybe they'll rename it later."

Skipping all the boring parts of the e-mail I scrolled all the way down to the bottom and tapped the download button. My e-mail list disappeared and the white room was immediately covered in black. A giant zero with a percent sign popped up along with a smaller window.

"Welcome to the Terminal Beta, while the download commences please input your data and continue into the character creation screen."

Oh nice, a feature that lets you do stuff while you download. That's a big step up from most games, well the character creation part is anyways. So once all the personal info was down, another window popped up as well as a human shaped model.

"Please choose race." Is what I read on the new window.

I was given a list of four choices: Norm, Terrafang, Demi-fiend, and Transcendent. The Norm race appeared to be the good old fashioned human race, the Terrafang was a humanoid beast race. Demi-fiend was a race full of horned humanoids with pointy ears, and the Transcendents were a race of cyborgs. A bit different from the usual races you see in MMORPGs, but there's only four.

Well knowing my creed when it comes to games with character creation I chose the Norm race. As soon as I clicked on the Norm icon, the model gained a default look. Fair skin, black spiky hair, white tank top, and white shorts. There was an option to customize the physical appearance of my character but I decided to skip it since I like the default look.

Another window popped up asking me to choose a class. It says here that the class chosen determines the highest stat for my character. This time I was only given three options: Warrior, Mage, and Sharpshooter.

Pretty self explanatory at this point. I really do love ranged classes, so it was a no brainer that I chose the Sharpshooter class. Nothing changed on the model, but another window appeared. This was the window I was waiting for.

"Oh the options are numerous! Right off the bat there are different styles of outfits and accessories to choose from."

The next window was the character appearance section. The game had a list of default outfits to choose from, and if that didn't satisfy the player, there was an option to pick each piece of clothing individually. There was a color wheel that catered to all the different shades and hues, so color customization was a plus.

There was an olden day Japanese school boy uniform under the default list that grabbed my attention. So I clicked on that and changed the color to the darkest of blacks. I'm glad the default outfit even included those hats they used to wear back in the day too. I scrolled through the accessories list to see if there was anything else I wanted to put on. There was a white eye mask that caught my attention. It was similar to the mask Shark used in the that giant robot series. I clicked the icon to put it on and kept it white.

My character was complete, the model represented all the choices I made perfectly. I clicked the next button. Before the next window popped up, I checked to see how much of the download had already finished. The percentage showed me 64%, that was pretty fast, just a little less than half to go.

The next window threw me for a loop.

"Please create a signature card. This card will represent your character and your individuality."

The heck? It says we're free to create it however we want regardless. But there's some guidelines and limits listed below.

"Let your creativity guide you. Just think it." Is what the last words on the window read. A next button appeared and as soon as I clicked it, a blank window appeared before me.

Just think it huh? I tried thinking about about the Excalibur sword from various forms of pop culture, and boom it appeared on the blank window.

"Woah seriously? Even the shape, color, and markings are identical!"

Luckily there was a retry button so I clicked on that to make the window empty again. A signature card, it sounds a lot tougher to come up with than I thought.

 _"Hey Guren, you're leaving us today huh?"_ Rang a voice in my mind.

That's right, I wonder how those four are doing? Without realizing it the blank window started scribbling a picture of four kids hanging out at a playground. The faces were missing, but that's only natural since I forgot their faces. I pressed the retry button to clear the window once again.

 _"We know how much you love Knights and dragons, so we made this picture for you!"_ Said another voice in my head.

Once again the blank window began scribbling something. This time it was two of the kids, they were holding up a doodle of what looked like a knight with a sword riding on top of a pig, wait no it should've been a dragon. I think I have the actual drawing somewhere, I should go find it later. Once again I hit the retry button.

 _"Here, a token to remember us all by. My dad got me these from a friend of his."_ Said another voice.

The blank window scribbled another faceless kid holding out a ring. It's weird how accurate this system was. It accurately drew the engravings on the ring I was given. It was engraved with a pair of wings bound by chains.

That's right, I have that ring on a necklace that I bring with me everywhere. I'll be going back to that place for my last two years of high school, I wonder if they'll still be there? I pressed the retry button to empty out the window. I think I know what I want for my signature card now. Taking all the things I've thought about just now into account I poured my imagination onto the blank window.

As my my idea became finalized I stared in amazement at what I came up with. An orange mechanical dragon whose limbs were connected by a constant flow of energy. The dragon was to be no bigger than my character was, but it was mountable. When I clicked next, a window popped up asking me to give a description of my card, and that the company itself would determine its final stats.

"I'll call it Dragonic Blaster, it acts as a mount and as a weapon. It's second skill..."

Pressing next again a window popped up asking me if my decision was final, and that I will be unable to change my signature card. I clicked the yes icon which took me to another screen.

"Please select your weapon of choice."

There were two icons, one of a gun and one with a bow. Clicking on the gun icon took me to another set of icons. There was a handgun, a machine gun, and a rifle icon. I tapped the handgun icon and four card shaped items appeared.

"Congratulations you have received the Sharpshooter Beginner's Handgun Pack."

The first card was titled beginner's hand gun, the next card was titled handgun ammo, the third card was titled beginner's knife, and the last card was titled grenade. There were some other words and numbers on the card, but I decided to press the accept button which took me to another window.

"Please insert the name for your character."

One of the challenges that come with character creation. Since there was only a hundred of us I'm pretty sure I'll get the name I want to use.

"Then let's go with Shinigami."

As I finished typing the letters in, I clicked on the next button and a small window popped up.

"Please enjoy the Terminal Beta, your character and anything you obtain throughout this beta will be carried over to the actual game. Please enjoy and don't forget to notify us about any bugs or things that you think need fixing."

Well at least all the work I put into character creation won't go to waste. Now to read the manual on how to play the game.

"Open Manual for Terminal." I ordered, looking at the 90% in front of me as the game's manual loaded up.

Hmm? This is actually pretty interesting, a game that looks like a mixture of PvP and trading cards. There's even in game money to buy said cards, oh and you can level up. This game might actually be worthwhile after all.

I was interrupted by a pinging sound, apparently I just received a new e-mail. It was from the developers of the game. It stated that my signature card was acceptable and that it'd take awhile for them to actually get it programmed into the game. I don't mind waiting, just means I get to read the manual some more.

After a bit there was another pinging sound, this time it was to alert me of the game's download status which has reached 100%.

"Alright, time to learn the rest of the game by experience."


	2. Chapter 1

**Terminal**

 **Chapter 2**

 **By: Glen Galiza**

"My first year of high school went by real slow, I'm glad to be back here. They even have a Battle Dome here! Time to scout the competition."

Chess City, my hometown, because of parental work reasons I had to leave here at a young age. I got permission from my folks to come back here to attend my last two years of high school here. I wonder if those friends of mine are still here too.

When I was younger I made friends with four kids my age at the time. We all went to the same elementary school together, and even though I forgot their faces, I can at least remember their names and a few other features.

The Battle Dome, think of it as an arcade for VR games. It accommodates a lot of people, but lately it's been filled by Terminal players. At least the one from my previous home was anyways.

"I've never seen you around town before. Up for a game?" Asked a random stranger.

This guy wasn't alone, he had two others with him. By the looks on their faces, they're probably noob hunters. This'll be fun!

"Sure I'm down, I'm not confident in my skills but I'm cool with a free battle."

"Perfect! But let's make it a bit interesting! How about we bet some cards?" Suggested the leader.

"A card bet? Well I guess I could bet this."

I took out a rectangular device. It's size was that of a smartphone, but it worked as a Terminal account and deck manager. This nifty device was called a Portable Terminal Device, or PTD for short. Basically with this, you can access your Terminal account anywhere that supports the game. The Battle Dome was the best place to use this.

I tapped and swiped a bit and came to a card pictured with raining thunderbolts. I showed the leader that card and and a greedy smile overtook their faces.

"You have a Plasma Storm card? That's pretty rare around here you know. The best we could offer you if you win would be-"

"Information, what I want is information." I rudely interrupted.

"If that's all you want, let's head to the public area!" Replied the leader. I could hear him laughing it up with his buddies.

They want to make this public? Noob hunters are the same everywhere you go huh? The public area wasn't too packed tonight, probably cause school starts tomorrow. This area in the Battle Dome was the biggest. The best thing about it was the Virtual Arena, this was introduced a month after Terminal. This system was created to make public showings of Terminal's Ranked Wars. But it's also used by the general public for regular player versus player (PvP) battles.

The Virtual Arena was like a giant white ring, covered by a transparent dome. I was standing at one end while the other three were at the other. In front of me was a sliding door and five pedestals that had a little cut out to fit my PTD. Placing my PTD on the closest one, waiting for the confirmation ping.

"Welcome to the Virtual Arena, are you ready?" Said an electronic voice. My PTD was showing me a "yes" and "no" icon so I tapped the "yes" icon making the ping sound go off.

The sliding door opened, inviting me in. As I walked through, digital blocks swarmed my body dressing me up in a black Japanese school uniform with the black hat. The last set of blocks that covered the top half of my face cleared up, revealing my white mask.

Everything inside the Virtual Arena was white, and from what I can make out, those three guys were wearing military outfits.

"Battlefield, Coliseum. Weather, Sunny. Battle start in 3..2..1 FIGHT!" Announced the same robotic voice.

The white space transformed into the center of the Roman coliseum in our modern day time. The place was broken down and it was so realistic. That aside, judging from their appearances, their team consists of two Sharpshooters with machine guns and one Warrior with a katana. Pretty standard, especially with their races. The two Sharpshooters were Transcendents, and the Warrior was a Terrafang.

"What's with the mask man? You trying to be a super hero?" Teased the leader, his goons laughing along with him.

"Actually, I prefer the term Reaper."

I quickly drew two handguns and fired four shots to the goon's head on my left side. The player turned grey and fell to the floor. The word "DEAD" marked his lifeless body in red. The remaining two could only look at their companion lying there.

The leader looked back my way, his eyes fixated on my guns.

"That shape...that color... Why do you have it? The only person who has those guns are..."

These guns are pretty neat, the card name was Death Barrels, it was a prize for winning the first online tournament Terminal ever held. They were pure black guns with coffin shaped side plates sandwiching the barrels. There were skulls and crossbones on the handles, and there was a short blade installed below the barrels.

"Oh so you recognize these?" I fired another round of shots at the other Sharpshooter, incapacitating him.

"You can't be him! Why is the Reaper here?" Cried the leader. He came charging at me swinging his katana wildly.

"Pathetic, then again it's probably because your level is lower than mines. Tell me, who are the stronger players that come here?" I asked, parrying his katana with the blades on my guns.

"There's a group I've only heard of. They never come to the Battle Dome and always face their challengers through their own home connection." The leader was starting to slow down, his movements were getting predictable.

"Now that's interesting, tell me more." I dodged one of his swings causing him to lose balance, so I tripped him by the leg.

"There's only two of them, they go by the name Chained Wings! If it weren't for the three member minimum requirement for Ranked Wars, they would probably be at least B-Rank. Please let me surrender, I'll even call off the card wager!" Begged the leader.

"Hmm? But the information you provided must be rewarded! I'll show you an even better card than Plasma Storm!" I holstered my guns, which actually broke down into cubes and vanished.

Reaching behind my back, a surge of digital cubes formed a silver white claymore. It's edge was outline by a glowing red light, I stabbed it into the ground near the leader's crotch.

"This weapon card here is called Decipede, this was only released during the beta stages of Terminal. There's more or less fifty of these that were released, and it has a very special skill. It can only be used as a finisher, and since I'm able to bring it out, do you know what that means?"

My opponent was shaking, it's amazing how fear is recreated here in the VR world. I lifted up the claymore with both hands, there was a buzzing noise similar to grinding metal emitting from it.

"Fear the Reaper, remember the name Shinigami!" I brought the claymore down right through the Terrafang's chest causing another death.

Overhead, the words "Battle Over, Winner Shinigami" broadcasted throughout the Virtual Arena.

"I have an announcement to make while I'm still in this form. Chained Wings, if you're out there, I Shinigami challenge you!"

As soon as my announcement finished I aimed straight for the door to leave. Last thing I need is for people to know Shinigami's true face. Although I guess those three saw it, but they'll probably forget it in due time. I put on my shades and tried to cover up my face with my collar as I left the Battle Dome. I better get to my aunt's house, she'll probably scold me for arriving late.

Oddly enough my aunt wasn't too mad last night, but she did give me a lecture. Walking out of my room and into the kitchen there was breakfast covered in plastic. There was a note to the side of it.

"Good luck at your first day of school!"

I hope everything goes as smoothly. Being treated as the new guy doesn't suit my taste buds. Upon exiting the apartment, I noticed my necklace was missing so I went back inside to go get it. There's no way I can leave without this baby, it's like my good luck charm. Also, maybe someone just might recognize it.

Luckily for me, the school I'll be attending is only a fifteen minute walk from my aunt's place. The school I'll be attending is called Cross Academy, they're a school that specializes in all things technology, but they do have the regular curriculum there as well. I had to cross the street to get to the school so I was at the crosswalk waiting for the "Walk" light to come on.

In the corner of my eye, a flash of pink caught my eye. Looking to my right, a girl with long, spiky pink hair walked towards me. Judging from the uniform, she's also a student at Cross Academy. Now that I think about it, the uniforms hurt my eyes. The boys wore all black with a checkered collar. The girls had the same black top, the only difference were the slender fits, the checkered ribbon around their necks, and the checkered skirts.

I caught myself looking at her with elevator eyes, she really was pretty. Our eyes made contact, that's when I averted my stare. I tried to avoid looking at her so she wouldn't think I was a creep.

"Hey, hey you!" Called a female voice. Was that her voice?

"You with the necklace! I'm talking to you!" Continued the voice.

"Yes?" I turned my head to find the pink haired girl smiling at me.

"Hey it is you! You were at the Battle Dome last night!" Said the girl excitingly.

Crap did she actually see my face? When was it? Before or after the battle with those three stooges?

"No I'm pretty sure you've mistaken me for someone else." I quickly replied.

"Is that so? But I'm pretty sure you were the one who took out those noob hunters, Mr. Shini-"

Before she could finish I covered her mouth with my hand. Afraid of looking suspicious doing so, I took her hand and brought her a bit away from the crosswalk.

"Obviously you're pretty smart, so I'm just going to have to ask you to keep my identity a secret." I pleaded, removing my hands from her.

"Well aren't you a rough one? Not that I mind of course, but this is great! To think Shinigami was actually a student at our school." Said the girl.

"So are you going to keep it a secret or not?" I asked.

"Asking for favors without so much as an introduction? Well I approached you first so I'll start the introductions. Lux Bright, Junior at Cross Academy." Replied the girl named Lux.

"Guren Takamine, so will you keep it a secret?" I pleaded once more.

"I could, but no promises. Why would you want to keep yourself hidden anyways?"

"I don't need the unnecessary attention."

"What if I told you I could arrange a fight between you and Chained Wings?" Asked Lux, leaning forward a bit.

"Why should I believe those words?" I questioned sternly.

"That's because I'm the one keeping their identities secret." Lux whispered menacingly.

What the heck is this girl spouting?

"You haven't caught on yet huh? Tell me, what's my last name again?" Lux asked, letting out a small sigh.

"It's Bright-"

Wait a minute! Bright? As in the last name of the CEO of Hondai Wamco?

"Judging by that face you're making, it finally sunk in."

"So you're his daughter... Of all the things to happen on the first day of school." I couldn't help but laugh.

"Hey stop laughing, we're going to be late so let's get a move on!" Demanded Lux.

"Wait I just need to head to the faculty office first. I'm transferring into the academy today!"

"Oh so you're the new student transferring to my class. Perfect! I'll take you there!" Lux grabbed my hand as we bolted towards school.

Luckily we weren't late, so after meeting my homeroom teacher I followed her to the classroom. Her name was Kyoko Nara, or Kyoko sensei, she was a beautiful woman, wouldn't be surprised if she was married.

"Takamine-kun, I was surprised when Bright-chan dropped you off here. Do you guys live near each other?" Asked Kyoko sensei.

"No, we just happened to meet at a crosswalk. From there we spoke a bit and she said she'd show me to the faculty office."

"Talk about a coincidence. In any case, she's a sly one so keep your guard up around her. I trust you have an idea of her background?" Explained Kyoko sensei.

I nodded in reply, if only I could've had this warning before I ended up at the crosswalk. We ended up in front of the classroom titled 11-A on the door. The door slid open automatically allowing the teacher and I in.

"Alright class is in session, but before that we have a transfer student joining us this year. Go ahead and introduce yourself Takamine-kun."

Putting me on the spot already? Walking towards the front center of the room I caught a glimpse of Lux smiling at me with her eyes closed. Can't fool me fox, I'll figure you out eventually! At the back of the room were a couple of guys sitting near the corner, judging from the open space at the corner, I'll probably be seated there.

"Guren Takamine, pleased to make your acquaintances. I was originally from here till I had to move to Cyber City during elementary."

The class was pretty quiet, but those two guys in the back started giving me their full attention. That's when one of them raised their hand, he had some pretty sick hair, it was like straight out of a manga.

"Nice necklace, where'd you get it?" The boy asked.

He's not after my necklace is he? Couldn't be, he doesn't seem like it.

"Before I left, one of my friends from the elementary school gave it to me as a parting gift."

"See James, I knew it was him! Hey it's me, Eden!" Said the boy. He got up from his chair and stood next to me.

"Eden... James... Woah no way! Eden Elric, and James Revan! I thought I'd never see you guys again!" Eden and I had a bro hug in front of the class.

"Oh my, you know those two Takamine-kun?" Asked Kyoko sensei.

"Yeah sure do sensei! How are Karin and Miyavi?"

Eden's face turned almost sour after hearing my question.

"As much as I love joyful reunions, class needs to start. Elric-kun, bring Takamine-kun to the empty chair near you. That'll be his seat, and please try not to get too carried away catching up. Save it for lunchtime."

As I was guided to my seat I looked back at where Lux was sitting. Her head was down, and she seemed a bit down.

Lunchtime came a lot sooner than expected, so I decided to ask Eden and James again about Karin and Miyavi.

"Well they're here attending Cross Academy but-" Eden started off.

"When you left, we all kind of just split up really. The girls had their own thing, and we had ours." James continued.

"Where are they now?" I asked.

"The student council room, you want to check it out?" Lux suggested. She was standing right behind me.

"Hey no, he's supposed to hang out with us during lunch!" Eden complained.

"Pipe down, he can hang out with you guys after school too you know? Besides I have some business with him right now anyways." Lux started pulling me by the collar.

"Wait don't I get a say in this? Lux? Hello?" I tried calling out to her. But to no avail, I was dragged out of the classroom.

Lux finally let me go after awhile, and after fixing my collar she gave me a serious look.

"Takamine, I have some advice for you. I don't know how or what you remember about Karin and Miyavi, but just be prepared for anything alright?"

She seemed pretty serious about this so I nodded and we continued walking down the hall. I noticed a lot of people were staring at us as we passed by. Is it because she's a Bright? No, there's something more to it, I can almost feel it. Thinking to hard on it, I didn't realize Lux stopped walking so I bumped into her.

"I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention!" I apologized.

"Geez Takamine, you can't be so pushy with girls, it's a red card. Not that I mind though, but we're here!" Lux was standing near a door, elbows on her hips.

Looking up, right above the door was a black plaque that read "Student Council" in bold white letters. Lux took out a card and swiped it through a device sticking out at the right side of the door. The door slid open as she walked inside.

"Well come on, get in already." She ordered, so I followed in right after her.

The room was real nice and spacious, it looked more like a lounge than a student council room.

"Hey prez what took ya? We were waiting here for awhile this time." Spoke a girl with glasses and short black hair.

"Oh please, you just got here yourself. I was the first one here as always!" Spoke another girl with brown hair in a ponytail.

"Would you like something to drink prez? Oh my who is this?" Asked a short girl with short red hair.

"Sorry for the wait, I just wanted to introduce you guys to the new transfer student from my class. Go on Takamine, introduce yourself." Lux grabbed me by the shoulder and pushed me forward.

"Pleasure, I'm Guren Takamine, the transfer student." I mentioned, scratching the back of my head.

"Guren?" Questioned the girl with glasses.

"Takamine?" Questioned the girl with the ponytail.

"No way, Karin? Miyavi? Is it really you guys?" I asked.

The two girls stood up and walked towards me with heavy footsteps. They both started examining me from different angles. I was starting to feel a bit awkward and embarrassed from all the staring.

"Wow you really got taller Guren!" Said the girl with glasses. If I remember correctly this one was Karin.

"Oh man it's been way too long! You still have that picture we gave you?" Asked the girl with the ponytail, so this is Miyavi now.

"Yeah way too long, I just met Eden and James too! Wait so you guys are part of the student council? You guys called Lux prez earlier too, does that mean she's-" Turning my head slowly, I can see the grin Lux had on her face.

"Yup, the girl you were checking out this morning is not only a Bright, but also the student council president of Cross Academy!" Gloated Lux.

"Hey wait I wasn't checking you out this morning!" I replied embarrassingly.

"Oh? Really? Mr. Elevator eyes?" Sneered Lux.

"You could see from that far away?" I blurted out.

"So you admit you were checking me out then?" Teased Lux.

"Okay, yes I was. Happy now?" I said in a depressed tone.

"Yes, not that I mind though. Although she might." Lux used her eyes to point at Karin who was clenching her fists.

"You were checking out prez this morning? You were even holding hands when you both arrived at school this morning!" Karin grabbed me by the collar.

"How did you know we were holding hands? Wait why does that even matter?" I cried out trying to loosen her grip. What the hell? Why is she so strong?


	3. Chapter 2

**Terminal**

 **Chapter 2**

 **By: Glen Galiza**

"The current Student Council President is the idol of our school! How dare you taint her with your eyes and hands!" Her hands firmly on my collar, Karin swept my left leg and slammed me on my back.

"What the... Heck!?" I let out in breaths. Damn that hurt! Was this the same shy girl from elementary?

"Sorry about my cousin Guren. Karin joined the judo club in middle school, so now she's one tough cookie!" Miyavi mentioned as she squatted near my face.

"That's not all there is to that is there- Wah! Miyavi! They're showing!" I blurted out, turning my head the opposite way. She was wearing a white pair with a pink ribbon design.

"Whoops! My bad Guren! Also, I'm going to apologize for what's going to happen next! Sorry!" Miyavi replied quickly.

"What do you- OW OW OW OW!"

Karin was sitting on top of my stomach locking and pulling my legs towards my face.

"Taking a peak at my cousin's panties now huh? What are the prez's not good enough for ya?" Karin asked angrily.

"Karin, that's enough now let him go." Lux ordered.

"Yes ma'am!" Karin said happily as she let go of my legs and got off me.

"Sorry about that, it was just too funny to stop." Joked Lux.

"I'm glad you're amused at least." I muttered sarcastically.

"Karin here is the head of our disciplinary committee, as well as the president of my fan club. Not that I mind it or anything. She's also..." Lux couldn't continue her sentence there. Her face looked a bit flushed.

"Karin is also a die hard fan of both yuri and yaoi." Finished Miyavi.

"What's wrong with that? I think love can be expressed equally regardless of gender." Karin added, pushing up her glasses.

I finally sat up, recovering from being thrown and put into submission. I started laughing it all off.

"When Lux warned me about how different you two would be, I wasn't expecting this! Bwahahaha!" I just couldn't stop laughing.

"Umm, excuse me, pardon the interruption of your there's reunion but we do have a meeting to hold now." Said the short girl with red hair.

"I'm sorry, umm what was your name?" I asked politely.

"Umm, I'm Ringo Watanuki, the student council secretary." Replied the girl named Ringo.

"Nice to meet you too. I better get going then, don't want to keep Eden and James waiting." Dusting off my pants I went straight for the door.

"Takamine, hold on." Lux called out. She grabbed my right hand with both of hers, and slipped something into it.

"Thanks for coming!" Lux let go immediately and waved me off. I could see Karin in the back staring daggers at me.

Finally school was over, it wasn't as bad as I thought but still glad it's over

"Hey hey Guren, wanna come with me and James to the Battle Dome?" Eden asked.

"The Battle Dome? Don't tell me you guys are Terminal players?" I asked surprisingly.

"Sure are! You play too?" Asked James.

"Sort of." I replied. Maybe these two know something about the group called Chained Wings, I'll ask them when I get the chance to.

"Hmm? Then today you can watch us play!" Eden added in joyfully.

I remembered the thing Lux snuck into my hands earlier during lunch. I walked away from Eden and James for a bit to check what it was. I hid the thing in my pocket, it was a folded up piece of paper.

"Hey guys I'm gonna head to the bathroom, I'll meet you guys at the school gate." I rushed out and headed straight to the nearest bathroom.

I occupied a stall and opened up the folded piece of paper. It read, "Here's my number, call or text me whenever you head to the Battle Dome. Let me know if you are going with a group and who those people are. Don't forget to include your name if you text me."

There's been way too many coincidences today. But I might as well let her know now. I sent a text stating what was about to happen with Eden and James. A few seconds passed and my phone started ringing.

"Guren speaking."

"YOU'RE GOING WHERE WITH WHO NOW?" Yelled the person on the other side.

"Is this Lux? Why are you yelling? It's in the message I sent! I'm going to the Battle Dome with Eden and James!"

"Oh geez, this is all happening faster than I thought. Ok I'll meet you guys there, but don't let them know I'm coming GOT THAT?

Lux hung up right after that. What the heck is up her butt? Well whatever, just don't let them know she's meeting us there right? I left the bathroom, got my stuff back in the classroom and went down to school gate to meet up with them.

We arrived at the Battle Dome in no time at all, I guess catching up on old times helped out a lot. Once inside we immediately went towards the public area. There was a fight going on in the Virtual Arena and it looked like things were getting a bit intense.

"So Guren, what race and class are you running for Terminal? You're definitely a warrior right? You're still into knights and dragons right?" Asked Eden.

I better not leak too much information, I mean what would happen if they found out who I was in Terminal?

"I chose the Norm race, and well I'm actually a Sharpshooter." I replied hastily.

"Oh a Sharpshooter? That's perfect! I'm a Mage myself and Eden himself is a Warrior!" Mentioned James with a big smile.

"Why is that perfect?" I questioned out of curiosity.

"We need a third member, and a Sharpshooter is just what we need to balance out our team!" Exclaimed Eden.

Joining them in a team wouldn't be such a bad idea. The only problem is my Terminal character itself. If Shinigami were to join a team, they'll just keep getting targeted. What's worse is that I'll be the reason why it's happening.

"I'll think about it, maybe after I see you guys in a match?"

"Sounds like a plan to me! Come on James let's go find out where we can register!" Eden and James took off.

Since I was by myself, I thought it'd be best if I sat with the other spectators. Oh I should text Lux and let her know I'm here.

Doing just that, I found an empty seat near the middle of the stands I was closest to. There were people cheering super loud for the battle that was going on right now.

The current match was a 1v1 match between two Warrior classes. One was a Demi-fiend and the other was a Terrafang. The Demi-fiend's health was in the red, the Terrafang however still had a bit over critical levels. This Demi-fiend however was making use of his racial passive by being airborne.

The Demi-fiend race are talented in both magic and strength, the latter still being overshadowed by their magic proficiency. So choosing this race as either a Warrior class or a Mage class could give you some good stability. If that wasn't enough, then the other passive skill is what usually pull most people in.

Demi-fiends unlock their passive "Demi Wings" once they reach level 5. This passive allows them to take flight when they wish, well the process of actually flying isn't that easy. The developers made it so when you think about how you want to fly, the wings (and other flight cards) will correspond. The tricky part, is fighting while flying. Once you lose focus, your flight option disappears and you gotta wait for the cooldown to finish.

Inside the Virtual Arena, the Demi-fiend player was actually holding himself well with his flight. As they say, a true Demi-fiend will be experienced in flight no matter the situation. Looks like the match will be over. The Demi-fiend used a dark sealing magic card called "Chain Hostage" to hold down his foe. That card lowers the user's magic stat while in use, but it keeps the target immobilized and from acting for three seconds. This Demi-fiend then used another magic card called "Charging Lance" which was a thunder based magic card.

It's basically a lance made out of electricity, but it does a lot of damage if you can hit your target. But there was no problems for this user, the battle was over and an announcement for an intermission was pinged.

"Enjoying the show Mr. Shinigami?" Whispered a familiar voice.

Looking to my left Lux was sitting next to me leaning over forward.

"Hey now don't say that name so easily. Did you just get here yourself?"

"What? You don't like it when a girl whispers into your ear? You're weird, not that I mind though, but yeah I just got here. Say you wouldn't happen to have your PTD on you would you?" Lux asked.

"I do, why?"

"Perfect, looks like you might get your fight sooner than you'd hope." Replied Lux, her expression watered down a bit. It looked like something was troubling her, but I decided not to press into it.

"That is perfect!" I agreed. Trying to leave my seat Lux stopped me by pulling on my clothes.

"Hold on a second! Geez so impatient, not that I mind though. They should be playing next, don't you want to watch them first?"

"Then how do I play against them if I don't sign up?"

"I'll take care of that when the time comes."

Lux was serious, I could feel her grip tightening. I sat back down, and focused on the upcoming match.

"We have an announcement to make! We have special guests participating next! It's their first time to make an in-person appearance here at the Battle Dome!"

It was a broadcast the whole Battle Dome could hear.

"To save the best for last, we'll introduce the special guests after. From the west side of the arena, you've probably received their initiation, they're always looking for new players to cough* help. If you guys haven't heard, last night they were offered to the Reaper! Give it up for Team New Hunters!"

Looking towards a bit to my left, I realized the players that were just called were the guys from yesterday. Let's see, the Terrafang's in-game name (ign for short) was Reiji, the two Transcendents were Kyo and Gyo.

"Oh geez they didn't learn their lesson last night?" I joked.

"Hmm? That wouldn't stop players like them. As non-player friendly as that is, some people just enjoy playing that way." Lux replied a bit sadly.

"So are they really coming up next?" I asked. Lux nodded, gripping her sleeve tightly.

"Now for our special guests! Turning to the east, the unknown players that have stayed at the top of the rankings in Chess City! The duo that's unranked because of the member requirement, CHAINED WINGS!"

Finally! It's them! I wonder what they look like?

Standing in the Arena, the two players were already covered in digital cubes taking in their appearances. The first one was a male Terrafang, lightly tanned, with black hair that spiked down towards the back of his neck. A bit above that was a tuft of hair bound by a hair tie, and he had one long and one short triangular markings on each side of his cheeks. He wore a fit red shirt that exposed his abdominals, brown gloves, long blue and brown pants with flaps hanging from the sides of his thighs. He wore a black belt with a golden rectangle buckle and brown boots.

The second member was a male Demi-fiend with reddish brown skin. His horns weren't visible, but I'm guessing they were hiding underneath his grey fedora. His pupils and sclera were pitch black his irises a rusted yellow. Priestly robes of grey covered his body, white gloves covering his hands.

Judging by their appearances, the common thing to think would be that they're a Warrior/Mage duo. Their names were Redline and Geno, at least according to the monitor and the shell of the dome.

"This is a reply to Shinigami's challenge! Challenge accepted!" Declared the Terrafang from Chained Wings.

"Battlefield Plains, Weather Sunny. Battle start in 3..2..1.. START!" Said a robotic announcer. The area inside the Arena turned into a grassy plain with the wind blowing gently.

This was one of the fields where the fighters would fight on equal terms. Well except for maybe those that use certain terrains to their advantage and play style. Team New Hunters charged in first, one of the Transcendents, the one named Gyo, ran alongside their Terrafang leader Reiji. Both of them were using the same weapon cards from last time. However the one farther behind had a much larger gun this time around.

"Oh? He's using the Black Wasp weapon card to cover the two in front? That's a pretty good strategy."

Black Wasp, was the name of the large gun the Transcendent Kyo was wielding. In other terms you would call that type of gun an LMG, or a Large Machine Gun. Usually the fire rates of these guns are slower, they pack larger bullets and magazines. Although the true nature of the Black Wasp was it's paralysis skill.

"Chained Wings haven't made a move yet! Are they trying to give New Hunters a handicap?" Commented a shout caster.

The Demi-fiend snapped his fingers, both his teammate and himself were shrouded in a white aurora.

"What is that?" I asked out loudly.

"It's Geno's Signature Card. But that's all you'll get out of me. Figure out how it works yourself." Replied Lux.

Returning my attention, both Reiji and Gyo split to the sides leaving an opening for Kyo to unleash his LMG. As the bullet storm unleashed, the two members of Chained Wings just stood there, taking the hits. Taking a look at their HP bars on the monitor, they were even losing that much HP, or rather they were healing more than they were taking damage.

"With a signature card like that, Geno must've been a beta tester too."

"They both were."

I looked at Lux, I can feel my eyes open wide and my lips cracking a smile. Beta testers are the best kind of opponent, their Signature Cards are usually more original and overpowered(OP for short).

Gyo stopped in his tracks and began firing away at Geno. Four walls of earth shot up from the ground surrounding Geno and fending off the gunfire. I noticed the glowing aurora from earlier was starting to fade.

"So that's it, there's a time limit to it."

"Correct, now just continue analyzing." Answered Lux.

Reiji went in for the kill, dashing towards the opposing Terrafang holding his katana overhead. Redline crossed his arms, digital cubes forming in both hands. In each handle the green butt of a sword formed, as it continued to progress into two handles the rest of the cubes formed a giant piece of metal shaped like a tuning fork. The u-bend however was shorter in length, taking up about 1/3 of the metal.

I've never seen that weapon before. Is that his Signature Card? Reiji closed in swinging his katana in a downwards slice. The blade collided with the hunk of metal forcing a vibrating pitch to resonate in and out of game. Just like a tuning fork, but I wonder what other properties that weapon card has.

Reiji's body flinched in reaction to the vibration, it must've been that much stronger up close. Not to mention his katana acted as both the catalyst and the medium. Redline pulled back his weapon and thrusted back into Reiji. The impact sent him flying a few feet away with another reverberating sound.

Strange, where'd the pressure from the Black Wasp go? I didn't realize it before but there was no more rounds coming from that direction. Focusing my attention to where that Kyo guy would be, I was surprised to see him covered up white glowing chains.

"That's the Holy Chain magic card! That's pretty rare!" I squealed out, like a fan girl.

"Oh this is new! Never expected that reaction out of you." Laughed Lux, trying to hold it back with her hand.

"Yeah so what? Holy Chain, a spell card that immobilizes and stuns the target for seven seconds with only an MP cost!" I replied, pushing up my invisible glasses.

Returning back to the fight, the player Kyo was now trapped in a bird cage of radiant white. A giant white bird of energy soared through the bird cage, leaving Kyo in the dead state with a bunch of white lights impaled into his body.

"What the heck was that?" I asked Lux.

"It's not surprising you don't know. I'm actually having them advertise a few new cards for the upcoming patch. They're also testing to see if any bugs appear. Speaking of which, give me your PTD I'll give you one too." Taking out my PTD, Lux snatched it away and began fiddling around with it. Should've put a lock on it, I'll remember to do so after.

Redline charged in after Reiji this time, carrying the huge weapon with ease. He swung the flat part of his weapon at Reiji, scooping him up and tossing him towards Gyo. Geno placed his hands on the ground, and as soon as Reiji and Gyo came into contact with one another, the same stone walls surrounding Geno erupted around the two noob hunters.

Lifting his hand in the air, Redline called forth a blue wolf made of lightning. Along with the beast followed black clouds and light rain. The surging blue wolf ran towards the two noob hunters location, pouncing into the pit. A blast of lightning erupted from within the confinement of rocks.

The clouds departed, and the rain came to stop. A strange buzzing noise emitted as a thin ray of light directed itself towards the remaining members of New Hunters. The small Ray expanded in size, a giant surge of energy poured into the ray creating a giant crater. There was another buzzing sound, but this time it was to signal that the match was over.

"They even have the Aura Ray card too? I want to fight them!"

I got up from my seat, Lux returned my PTD, and I headed off towards the side of the stage opposite of Chained Wings.

"THE WINNERS... CHAINED WINGS! Wasn't that exciting for our last signed up battle folks?" Asked the shout caster. The viewers surrounding the arena were screaming and cheering.

There's no way I could wait anymore, I approached the device that takes your PTD. The lights illuminating the arena suddenly turned off.

"WAIT A MINUTE FOLKS! IT SEEMS A NEW CHALLENGER HAS LOCKED INTO THE ARENA- hey what are you doing here? This are you even allowed in here- oh my gosh I'm sorry I'll introduce you to the-" The from what I can tell it seemed like someone else took over the shout casting desk. Whoever turned off the lights timed it really well, now I'm sure nobody will see my face.

"Is everyone enjoying their time tonight?"

Oh no, don't tell me this is her doing...

"For those who don't know who I am, my name is Lux Bright and tonight I'm here to commentate on this last and special battle tonight!"

The crowd cheered even harder, it sounds like she's got quite the fan base.

"For those of you who noticed, Chained Wings were using cards that are coming in the next patch! So aren't you all lucky you got a sneak peak?" Mentioned an enthusiastic Lux.

The crowd went wild again, it doesn't sound like the hype will die out any time soon.

"For this last match, we have another special guest! You may have seen him last night, you may have heard his declaration of challenge! You've heard his declaration returned with acceptance! Chained Wing's next opponent goes by the nickname Reaper! GIVE IT UP FOR SHINIGAMI!" Lux let out.

The sliding door in front of me opened, as I walk in the digital cubes dressed me up in my black uniform and white mask. The battlefield changed from the destroyed grassy plains into the ruins of a city. As I continued walking, I came mask to face with the two members of Chained Wings.

"Open slot window." I commanded as I waved my hand in front of me. A window that only I could see popped up in front of me. I was curious to know what Lux put into my PTD.

"Not only did she add the card, she put it into my sub slots. Well this is an interesting weapon, I guess every Reaper needs his scythe!" I clicked on the new card that was added into my sub slot. The window disappeared and was replaced by a black pole that grew outwards horizontally.

As the end growing to my right halted, two red beams of light erupted from both sides of the tip. They formed curved blades, that resembled a crescent shape. The other end came to a halt as well, so grabbed the weapon and spun it over my head a few times before resting it over my shoulders.

"Now Chained Wings, give this Reaper a damn good fight!" I taunted.


End file.
